NASHVILLE, Tennessee -- Miles Prentice, the majority owner of the Huntsville Stars since 2001, was a busy man at the Baseball Winter Meetings, with teams in the Southern, Texas and New York-Penn leagues.

He took the time to sit down for 30 minutes with Huntsville Times columnist Mark McCarter to discuss the Stars' future, potential for a new park and other matters. Here are some excerpts:

Times: There's still a perception that the Stars' future in Huntsville is shaky. How do you address that?

Prentice: I can't. I've tried. I'm going to stop trying (to fight the perception). We do what we can do. We try to put the best product we can on the field. We've had the best attendance of any (Southern League) All-Star Game. We put on one of the best (shows).

(General manager Buck Rogers) has some good things coming in. We've got some new sponsorships. That's what it's going to take.

The ballpark, physically, is as clean as it's ever been. Buck does a good job. He's traded out. He's re-doing a lot of suites. The leaks we can't do anything about. You got a big umbrella?

We're got to replace the picnic area tent. He's got a list of capital things that he needs in January, February and March and we'll be ready for April.

Times: Buck has a short staff of people, with a lot of interns. He's losing a key player in Jill Cacic. Is this a Catch-22 deal where you need a bigger front office to lead to bigger crowds, but you can't justify a bigger front office until the crowds grow?

Prentice: We've budgeted for two more permanent people in addition to beefing up the interns. He's real excited about what he saw (in his interns). He has a real seasoned corporate sales person starting in January. His job will be to go out and sell.

We talk regularly and I tell him he needs one or two more (pair of) boots on the ground.

Prentice: The interesting thing, I don't disagree with the idea. They wanted us to build a ballpark downtown in Midland. But we built one on the outside of town. And there are hotels growing up around it, restaurants, a BMW dealership, a huge doctor's complex and across the ballpark a housing development, with a 150 houses. Sold out.

Times: Could a downtown park prompt that in Huntsville? There's obviously not as much room.

Prentice: The spot where it is, I've told them, and I've gone out and gotten estimates, we could re-do that ballpark in less than a year. You could keep the parking. You have all that land around it that can be developed if you wanted. Downtown has some appeal, but last time I was downtown, there were a lot of empty stores.

Times: Mayor Tommy Battle has said he's interested in a ballpark, but it needs to be a public-private project. The owner needs to have, in his phrase, "some skin in the game." Where are you in terms of a joint public-private partnership?

Prentice: We've never gotten to discuss anything. When we did (the new stadium in) Midland, I put in all the concession equipment. Two million bucks. The stadium was 17 million. That's a pretty significant contribution. Plus as part of an on-going lease payment, I added $50,000 a year. Over 20 years, that's another significant amount. I made those proposals (to Huntsville). They went and built a jail.

Times: That was eight years ago or more.

Prentice: Is it still sitting empty?

Times: No. That's been a long time ago. We're now in the second term of a new administration from that one. There's now a plan on the table about a park in the area of Joe Davis that would keep the stadium as an anchor and/or also have an amphitheater.

Prentice: Here's the thing, Mark. Midland, when they did their complex, it made sense to do what they did. They thought about it. They put in a high school football stadium and a minor league baseball stadium. The high school football stadium could be used for soccer, had a multi-use thing.

Times: Huntsville already has that.

Prentice: Do they have a good one?

Times: Yes. The city just invested in putting artificial turf at the Alabama A&M stadium and they put turf at the other city stadium a few years ago. It's an older stadium, but it's functional for a city that doesn't have the interest in high school football there is in Midland.

Prentice: I've shared with Tommy and the previous administration ... the one guy on the city council in Midland who voted against the project eventually became mayor. When he became mayor, he came up to me and said, "I was totally wrong." (Midland has averaged 278,378 fans in 11 years since the stadium opened; the Rockhounds were sixth in the eight-team Texas League in 2012).

It gives the city a feeling of world-being. They walk in and go, "Holy smoke, look what we've done as a community. That pride. That sense of ownership has transcended. People are using it because it's theirs.

I believe Huntsville would react the same way if they had a facility. That's why I've told them to link it with something.

Times: Huntsville is not a spectator sports city. It's a high-tech town, they love things like Monday nights having a concert in the park...

Prentice: If it's free.

Times: I'm just saying. It's more of a cultured town.

Prentice: It's tough because every community is a little different. I can't speak with any authority (about Huntsville) but I look at things and I sense if we have a stadium that was first-class we could attract SEC baseball games, tournament games. In Norwich, we have five Division I baseball games there next year. You could do one a year in Huntsville and it'd be helluva thing.

One of the things Monty (Hoppel, Midland GM) has been doing is tracking the zip codes of the people who are coming to the game. There are lot of non-Midlanders. Huntsville is in a good location, too.

Times: One of my gripes with the Stars' organization for years is it hasn't taken the time to reach out to Decatur and Florence and outlying areas.

Prentice: It's not been a problem anywhere else I've been. I'll say that. Which is interesting.

Times: But in terms of knowing the community better. And do you sense you need to be there more often, to shepherd this franchise? And why haven't you?

Prentice: I spend about the same amount at each franchise. And I do that intentionally. What you don't see is I'm on the phone every day. And in the season it's maybe four or five times a day. And a home game, it could be 10 times a day. Because I call every second inning. And that's the way I've operated in Midland and the way I'm operating up in Norwich, Conn. And it's worked.

The weather has been an issue (on attendance) but I do accept responsibility on other things. We're trying like hell to make it a good atmosphere. We put in the souvenir stand with no help from the city. The Brewers were screaming they had to have a batting cage. I funded that. It's fine. Because I like the Brewers. I want to keep the Brewers.

Times: OK. Last question. Is the team for sale?

Prentice: Is it for sale? Anything is for sale. (Laughing) Am I marketing it or listing it? No. I am not.